that does it for "the cycle." good afternoon, it's tuesday april the 23rd. at a time when americans have come together, some just can't help dividing the nation. >> possible motive behind those deadly attacks. >> he told investigators it was because of their religious views. >> anwar al alaki. >> charged by federal prosecutors in his hospital room. >> that could carry death penalty. >> he's in self-preservation mode. >> investigators are taking a closer look at an unsolved triple homicide. any possible role tamerlan tsarnaev may have played. >> how could we miss all of the activity this guy engaged in? >> the fbi seized bbs and a large pyrotechnic. >> it was almost entirely done from the internet. >> he did not need to see his miranda rights read to him in

bed. it's laughable. >> the enemy is radical islam. >> i'd waterboard him, myself. you are about to look live at a press conference in boston. where governor deval patrick and mayor thomas menino are about to speak about the formation and purpose of the one fund boston campaign. designed to assist those who are affected by last week's bomb attacks. this takes place as dzhokhar tsarnaev lies in a hospital bed facing charges. his condition now reported as fair. more than a week after the bombing, 45 of the scores of wounded remain hospitalized, and at least 13 have lost limbs. for the victims, the physical and emotional toll comes with a very real financial one as well. massive bills for trauma care, prosthetic limbs and even home modifications. not to mention, lengthy physical

rehab and psychological counseling. as such, one fund boston is stepping in to help. already raising over $10 million for victims and their families. and while the injured struggle with recovery, the families of those killed in the bombing are facing their own staggering loss. the family of 8-year-old martin richard held a private memorial releasing a statement today, "this has been the most difficult week of our lives, and we appreciate that our friends and family have given us space to grieve and heal. a private funeral mass was celebrated this morning with immediate family. we laid our son, martin, to rest, and he is now at peace." and friends, family and colleagues are saying a final farewell today to the m.i.t. officer allegedly killed by the boston bombing suspects. sean collier's siblings spoke exclusively to nbc's savannah guthrie about their loss. >> i think we're coping as best

as we possibly can. we are a very large and close family. we've sort of rallied together at our parents' house, just spending time together and trying to remember the best parts about sean. >> now, you know, through his death, i really, i realize how good of a person he was and i wish i could have told him that while he was still here. >> under questioning from his hospital bed, dzhokhar tsarnaev tells investigators that he and his brother had no connection to any international nexus of terrorism, but were motivated by religious fervor, acting alone, learning their bomb making from where else, but the internet. with us now from boston is kevin cullen, a columnist from "the boston globe." >> okay. all right. he's in the shot, he said. >> kevin, can you hear me? >> yep, i can hear you. >> great. i can't see you yet. i can now. thank you so much, kevin. >> okay. >> you've written, kevin,

outstandingly about everything from the community in cambridge, to the absurd notion of tamerlan tsarnaev as a tough guy who was so hard he had to beat up his girlfriend. how is boston reacting to the revelation that these young men were awarrapparently not co-opt terrorists in chechnya but self-motivated to murder and maim people in your city? >> well, martin, i guess the best way to explain it is that in our town, the motivations of these two people is so far down the list of our priorities. i mean, we are burying our dead today, and we still have people in the hospital. and we have to take care of our first responders. there are so many people that were traumatized by what happened, you know, a week ago monday. that what's going on -- i don't mean to be flip here, but i'm telling you what i know about

this town, the people i talk to, this is my town. and the idea, if we are not obsessed about whether he get a miranda warning or what the motivations were about this stuff, we're trying to take care of our people. and that's the number one priority. and, yeah, we may discuss, well, he was motivated by this, motivated by that. even in the interim, last week, when we did not know whether this homegrown nut bag from some militia or whether it was somebody inspired by a perverted view of islam. we didn't focus on that here. >> kevin, i absolutely understood. i wonder if you'd bear with me for a moment. we're about to listen to mayor menino speaking live now. >> generated by simple clicks on your computer across the world. it's tremendous and truly amazing. we have about 50,000 donors.

we still haven't mentioned the bag full of money, we haven't opened that one yet. this charitable organization will help those families most affected by monday's tragic events. provide comfort to those who wish to donate to an organization that has experience and know how to do it right, and do it right is the most important part of this organization. i've met with kent feinberg i've known for many years and asked him to help us get this support to victims as swiftly as possible. i also asked him to work with victims and families to decide the best way to do this. he will outline a timetable today that accomplishes both goals. i want to thank ken for agreeing to be the administrator of the one fund boston. ken, besides being a good guy,

he comes from a city down in brockton, i think it is, and always displayed an outstanding commitment to public service, and one time he was chief of staff for our great senator kennedy. his work in our communities, example to all of us. i cannot imagine a better leader for this important work at this time. i want to also thank all the people who have already comm committed to one fund boston. >> we've been listening to mayor menino in boston explaining the new one boston fund which will be a charitable organization to provide help to those afflicted by the events last week in boston. we're still with kevin cullen of "the boston globe." kevin, you've also written movingly about the victims and the contrast you draw between an immigrant like lu lingzi who only wanted to grasp everything america had to offer, then you brilliantly define that with these brothers who basically

wanted to kill. >> yeah. what a beautiful girl she was. and she was exactly the sort of -- she came and took from america exactly -- i mean, we are a nation of immigrants. look around here, martin. everybody here -- we've got everything here. and i thought she was the classic example of the immigrant story. and, you know, she probably would have went back to china, you know, but who knows. maybe she would have stayed. the difference is how she came here and saw an opportunity. those kids threw all their opportunities away. and the other thing i was just talking to a cop, you know, this guy's like a, you know, a devote muslim, he says? this guy was selling grass. that's how he funded his lifestyle. i don't know any devout muslims who sell grass. i don't know any devout muslims who smoke grass. so this guy, wrapping himself up in the flag of islam, is an insult to islam and an insult to all muslims. >> yeah. you're also aware that beautiful

little boy, martin richard, was laid to rest earlier today. >> yeah, i knew that. >> what can you tell us about the impact of this on his family? >> well, the impact, i think, goes well beyond his family. it goes throughout dorcester where the family was very well known. bill and denise richard are very involved in that community. ashmont's a great success story of boston. 20 years ago, the idea of moving to ashmont, people would say, you're out of your mind. that community has really come back and, you know, it's come back in part because of people like the richards who, you know, who make the neighborhood better, who make the neighborhood safer, who really fought for one of the best. it's probably the nicest transit station in the neighborhoods of boston. the ashmont station is awesome. and bill richard was very involved in the community in getting that stuff. but there's just this vibe around that neighborhood, so that neighborhood is crushed by poor little martin getting

killed. and that's why, i mean, i lr tommy menino, i think you get to the substance of boston because tom menino is not very good -- he's not the greatest orator, but, you know, he's one of us. this is what we like. you know, we don't want somebody wrapped up in baloney sentences, everything. tom menino is a mayor who helps neighborhoods. that's why he keeps getting elected, although he's going out now. god bless him. he's served 20 years for us. but i think that's -- i'm sure people all over the world are watching, saying, that's the mayor of boston? he doesn't sound like much of an orator. he's not. he's lousy at it. he admits it. he makes fun of himself for that. the reality is tom menino knows that neighborhood and he's our mayor. and the richard family, they're our people and they will be taken care of. but how do they recover from that? how do they ever have a good day after what happened to martin, what happened to janeny, the little sister who lost her leg?

how does little henry recover from this seeing what happened to his siblings? how does poor bill richard recover from this? the one good thing, friends of mine who are very friendly with the richards say denise is making good progress. first couple of days, it was touch and go. hopefully denise will fully recover. hopefully -- we have to figure out some way -- janie was a great irish dancer. we have to get her a prosthesis. she is going to dance again. that's what i want to see. >> that's a wonderful aspiration. kevin, i have to say, your reporting on this story has been exemplary and we all here appreciate the standard and quality of what you've been writing. thank you, sir. >> that's very kind. thank you, martin. >> thank you, kevin. next, more on the investigation as we try to piece together tamerlan tsarnaev's six months in the motherland. stay with us. keep going. it will get better. any final thoughts? >> being in watertown right now,

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as dzhokhar tsarnaev is interrogated from his hospital bed, we're learning that investigators combing through phone and computer records have found no sign of any accomplices in the boston bombings and are confident that the brothers acted alone. tsarnaev has reportedly told investigators that he and his brother were motivated to defend islam. citing the wars in iraq and

afghanistan and that they acted alone. learning how to make bombs from an online magazine published by al qaeda. meanwhile, we're hearing more from the suspect's family members. today the lawyer for the wife of tamerlan tsarnaev says the bombing caused her and her family extreme distress and she was stunned to learn of her husband's alleged involvement. >> the reports of involvement by her husband and brother-in-law came as an absolute shock to them all. >> and in dagestan, the suspect's mother is adamant that her sons are innocent. >> what happened is a terrible thing, but i know that my kids have nothing to do with this. i know it. i am mother. >> joining us now from boston is nbc news national investigative correspondent michael isikoff. and frank silufo, director of the homeland security policy institute at george washington university. good afternoon, to both of you.

mike, as the investigations continue both here and oversea, we understand that investigators are confident these brothers acted alone. even as their family members express utter bafflement. what are we learning about the larger case against these suspects? >> reporter: well first of all, this is looking, martin, more and more like a case of self-radicalization. now, nothing is conclusive and, you know, we're far from the end of this investigation right now. >> of course. of course. >> reporter: but the preliminary indicators, first, you have tsarnaev saying the two acted alone. number two, that preliminary review of cell phones and e-mails do seem to show no indication of accomplices, no contact with outsiders prior running up to the plot. third, the no claims of responsibility by any outside terrorist groups. and, in fact, in some cases denials of any responsibility.

of any connection. while that's far from conclusive, it's an indicator because often if a terrorist group, particularly an al qaeda. related group, did commit something like this, they usually tend to boast about it. and that hasn't happened here. so right now it is looking like this case of self-radicalization inspired by the internet, the "inspire" magazine put out by al qaeda in the arabian peninsula. preachings of a radical preacher named faiez mohamed, his preachings show up on the youtube account posted by tamerlan tsarnaev. but the fbi is continuing to investigate. just today we talked to members of the spokesman for the mosque in cambridge where tamerlan tsarnaev had engaged in these disruptions we've heard about in the last few days and were told the fbi is questioning members of the mosque. people who were witnesses to that incident. people who had interactions with

the tsarnaev brothers. now, that doesn't indicate that they have any suspicions about any members of the mosque. they're trying to understand where they were coming from, what might have led them to this, to commit this bombing. and i think that's where it's looking right now. >> and you mean by that, mike, this conflict with someone in the mosque who was speaking who in the tsarnaev brothers' temerity, compared the prophet muhammad to martin luther king jr.? >> reporter: right. tamerlan tsarnaev, the older brother, disrupted the services, accused the speaker who compared martin luther king to the prophet as a coffer, a nonbeliefer, and a hypocrite. he got taken aside, was basically lectured to and saying if you don't be respectful of the sermons and the services, we're going to have to ask you to leave, not to come back. and he did come back, by the

way. >> yes. >> reporter: in fact, i was told he was seen at the mosque just within the last month. >> right. frank, given that the younger brother has said they were not influenced by any terrorist organization but were self-motivated, does this now render any investigation in chechnya or dagestan to be largely irrelevant, and is this now much more about the psycho pathology of these brothers? >> you know, i think it's too early to tell. obviously the russians had come under -- were concerned enough to alert others they may have had contact with chechen separatists or others in the jihadi circles there. so i don't want to jump to that right away, but clearly we have done some studies including one in 2007 that looked at internet facilitated radicalization. and the one theme that came out that was consistent, it's the ideology. to paraphrase bill clinton, it's the ideology, stupid. one thing we noticed here in particular is the killer application of the internet is

people. it's that ability to reaffirm attitudes in all dark corners of the web. and unfortunately, there are a lot of people who do so. so there have been 60-plus plots of so-called homegrown jihadism since 9/11. a spike in the last few years. we've seen more spikes and attempts recently. some of those are purely homegrown. some are foreign where they've gone to return overseas and come back home. others are often a hybrid of both. they're turns to jihadi ideologues and following through on some of their actions. >> right. mike, the fbi is under intense scrutiny for its handling of tips from russia, as frank just said, about tamerlan tsarnaev. house homeland security committee chairman congressman mike mccaul just had this to say. take a listen. >> if there were some warning signs there, even if there wasn't enough to detain or put him into custody, i think

certainly they should have continued to monitor him. >> mike, is it your view that we could see this case lead to a re-examination of overall security protocols? >> reporter: i think that's absolutely going to come out of this. a lot of debate and a lot of discussion about how the fbi should handle a situation like this. what we know is they got this information from the russians that he was a radical follower. he might have contact with unspecified underground groups. they specify they talk to him. they don't find evidence of criminal activity or terrorist activity. there the matter lays. what should the fbi had done at that point? tsarnaev then some months after that leaves for russia. he spends six months there. he comes back. he sets up that youtube account

which clearly is an indicator of a radical islamic jihadi thinking or at least that's what he's posting. should that have been something the fbi monitored? i think that's what the congressman is getting at and i think that's what you're going to see a lot of questioning about. should he have been on a watch list? should the fbi knowing he was gone for six months and went to chechnya and dagestan, should that have triggered further follow-up, further investigation in it's a very tricky question because of the civil liberties issue here. at what point do you stop monitoring people, how closely do you monitor, say, the social media or youtube accounts of people who there might have been allegations about but no evidence of criminal wrongdoing? a lot of debate about this, but i think that's where the ultimate fallout of this is going to rest around trying to sort out those issues. >> michael isikoff and frank

cilluffo, ygentlemen, thank you for joining us. next, righteous indignation, a reporter's shocking outburst, renders sean hannity speechless. however the condition was only temporary. stay with us. >> i don't care if she knew about this. she ought to be in prison for wearing a hijab. this policy of us assimilating immigrants into our culture isn't working. they're assimilating us into their cultures. do you get a -- too? >> i don't know the answer to that. oh, boy. [ groans ] ♪ ♪ [ engine revs ] ♪

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zyrtec-d®. at the pharmacy counter. to prove to you that aleve is the better choice for him, he's agreed to give it up. that's today? [ male announcer ] we'll be with him all day as he goes back to taking tylenol. i was okay, but after lunch my knee started to hurt again. and now i've got to take more pills. ♪ yup. another pill stop. can i get my aleve back yet? ♪ for my pain, i want my aleve. ♪ [ male announcer ] look for the easy-open red arthritis cap. from immigration reform delayed, to a mother defiant, and, of course, guns. here are today's top lines. chechnya, czech republic, what's the difference? >> they are muslims. they are brothers. which makes them the muslim brotherhood. >> you really think we would overreact to a terror attack on

our soil by invading a country that had absolutely nothing to do -- >> if we put the pieces of the puzzle together, it is clear we must invade the -- >> i believe our nation is at war. >> those who are pointing to what happened as an excuse. >> the enemy is radical islam. >> for not doing a bill or delaying it many months or years. >> i never said that. >> the reason we didn't know we went to russia is because the name was misspelled. >> even with the misspelling, the system did ping when he was leaving the united states. >> you have obviously been focused on matters such as the boston bombing. have you had the time to read all 844 pages? >> actually i have read the bill. >> the only thing more important than getting immigration reform done is slowing immigration reform down. >> my kids would never get involved into anything like that. >> we talked about the bombing. >> yeah. he said, yeah, it's really a tragedy it's happening right now. it's a sad thing. >> he said it's sad? >> it was something as it's called being radicalized. >> my kids have nothing to do with this. >> most people in watertown.

have guns. a terrorist with bombs and guns walking around your neighborhood, you're a sitting duck. >> if only everyone had guns and bombs and whatever the [ bleep ] they can get their hands on. >> i'm going to tell you about your constitutional rights. you have the right under the constitution of the united states to remain silent. >> it's a mistake not to treat him as an enemy combatant. >> i want to know about this wife. >> she is doing everything she can to assist in the ongoing investigation. >> she ought to be in prison for wearing a hijab. this immigration policy of, you know, us assimilating immigrants into our culture isn't really working. no, they're assimilating us. >> let's get right to our panel now. dana milbank is a political columnist for the "washington post." and joy reid is of course the managing editor of the grio.com. welcome to you both. dana, given how some on the right are using the events in boston, how much harder has marco rubio's job become of chief salesman of immigration reform on behalf of republicans? >> it's fairly unbelievable,

martin. i mean, it was going to be a difficult job to start with, but when you first looked at the facts here and said, well, entered the country legally, one a united states citizen. it would seem not to have any effect at all. the fact that it does seem to be riling up the right would indicate that there's just about anything that can set off this powder keg here. so it's a very difficult thing. immigration is one of the few things where there is a potential path of something actually occurring here in washington this year. and even that just got a whole lot -- >> well done, republicans. joy, let's listen to the kind of flame throwing that poor marco rubio now must face. here it comes. >> i don't care if she knew about this. she ought to be in prison for wearing a hijab. this immigration policy of us assimilating immigrants into our culture isn't really working. no, they're assimilating us into their cultures. you get a clitoridectomy, too?

>> i don't know the answer to that. >> a clitoridectomy is actually the name. >> where to begin? ann coulter only spoke for ann coulter. fact is there's a core on the right against any kind of immigration reform. what she just said essentially is throwing out the whole nation of the bill of rights. apparently our constitution is a second amendment surrounded by a serious of suggestions. right? because now we want to imprison people for what they ware, imprison people for their religion. >> i was wondering whether she confused the united states with france because in france, there is a law banning particular places and locations the wearing of the hijab. >> i thought we didn't want to be like the french. >> i don't know. dana, let me show everyone else what else rub wrio is up agains. a picture of rubio at a convention of talk radio hosts last week. that's rubio on the right being interviewed by one talk radio host. see over the flames on the banner, the event was called

"hold their feet to the fire." sponsored by the federation of american immigration reform which is opposed to reform. how much do conservative talk show hosts hold over this party? they seem pretty awesomely powerful. >> i'm not sure ann coulter by herself has that much power. she's in this unique position to keep her career going always having to say something more outrageous. it's actually a medical condition since she's suggesting certain medical procedures. she needs to have her jaw wired shut. but for the rest of the party, this is a very serious situation. rush limbaugh started the case against marco rubio a few weeks ago. it's interesting how they step into line behind this. it's getting exceedingly difficult to defy not just the talk radio part, but now you've got their instant followers such as ted cruz who you just played

there stepping in line behind it. >> of course. >> it's excruciating on somebody like rubio, on somebody like lindsey graham up for re-election. on somebody even like john mccain and jeff blake. so it's not impossible for this to occur, but it got a whole lot more difficult. >> joy, here's how the "national review" captured rubio's visit there. "it was striking to see how much he is personally admired by the colorful conservative pundits who broadcast on local a.m. stations, and by the biggest syndicated names like limbaugh. they still believe, without a doubt, that he's a top contender for the republican presidential nomination in 2016 and they love that he's already a national force. but when it comes to immigration, they're not buying it." >> yeah. >> why? >> well, because, you know, at the end of the day the o's at the end of rubio's first and last names are quite valuable to the republican party as an avatar for bringing in more hispanic voters. the ideas he's saying are not useful. it's been kind of pathetic to

see marco rubio, supposedly this towering figure, latino ronald reagan of the republican party going hat in hand to radio hosts, begging them to see his bill is going to microchip every immigrant that comes across the border with biometric data and can't get obama care so they can work and pay taxes but never get medicaid. you're seeing him going hat in hand trying to sell his bill as even more draconian and far right. we're going to electrify the whole southern border, i suppose, or whatever it is they want. just to get them to pass something that would help the republican party because it would make them less toxic to latino voters. >> joy reid and dana milbank, who i believe was recommending not clitoridectomy, but the removal of the tongue for ann coulter. thank you very much. >> thank you, doctor. as we go to break, new video just in featuring the mother of the bombing suspects, again, insistent that her sons are innocent. >> what happened is a terrible thing. but i know that my kids have nothing to do with this.

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my doctor recommends citracal maximum. it's all about absorption. a list compiled from recent reports of the weapons that tamerlan and dzhokhar tsarnaev were said to be carrying during their desperate attempt to plea boston on friday night. it reportedly includes one pressure cooker bomb, improvised explosive devices, one m-4 carbon rifle like the kind used in iraq and afghanistan, ha handguns and a bb gun, of course. in massachusetts the bb gun would be the only thing on that list that the younger tsarnaev would be legally able to obtain. we're joined by neil, whose 6-year-old son, jesse lewis, killed december the 14th at the sandy hook elementary school in newtown, connecticut. good afternoon. >> good afternoon. >> we don't know yet how the bombing suspects got their hands

on so many guns, but the gun lobby is already saying, today, that this is proof that laws restricting access to firearms don't work. what do you say to the gun lobby, sir? >> well, as you said, i -- the question is how they got their hands on the weapons that they had. i think what happened in boston is definitely a complicated issue, too. you know, you can't help wonder if better background checks could have helped identify by what happened there. being a threat. >> because i'm sure you may be aware, sir, that one of them was actually too young to purchase these firearms. >> that's correct s. >> and the other wasn't licensed. >> that's correct. from what i understand. >> so it would appear that they procured these weapons illegally. >> yeah. i would assume they were

purchased illegally or possibly out of state. maybe at a gun show. but that's only speculation. >> and if that's the case, why would background checks be important? >> well, i think it -- getting back to what happened in boston, you know, if there was some sort of thorough background checks with the immigration, possibly that could have identified them or definitely put up more red flags than what would have been put up already. >> you told the "new york daily news" that last week's senate vote on background checks made you realize that this is just -- i'm quoting you -- a political game. >> yes. >> what did you mean by that? >> i believe it is. you had -- you have something that 90% of the population in

the united states supports. and 90% of the democrats supported it in the vote. 54% of the majority supported it. and you had 90% of republicans that did not support it. so based on that, it clearly, it just appears to be a political game. you know, and it's sad it's come to this and it's just common sense. it tells you that the background checks could help and would help. >> what do you -- how do you feel these politicians regard people like your son who was killed? i mean, if this is just a political game, are 20 babies in a school simply rolled into that game? is that all they are? >> i believe it is to a degree.

i feel it's sad that they can't recognize what happened in newtown more. they were innocent babies. children that were doing exactly what they should have been doing. they were in their classroom learning, going to school. they did nothing wrong. they were doing exactly what they should have been. the teachers, the educators, were there doing what they were supposed to be doing. and, just, it goes -- it's unbelievable that it could happen -- something like that could happen. >> we heard news today, sir, of another retirement in the united states senate. this time it's senator max baucus of montana. one of just four democrats in the senate to vote against universal background checks last week. i wonder if i could ask you this. if you could speak with senator baucus right now, what would you

say to him? >> i would ask him why he does not support background checks. i thought it was a very good compromise to what was put on the table. and unfortunately none of the congressmen that have voted against the background checks have given any reason or an answer to why they voted the way they did. but they did put their name on there. and i think, you know, it's clear that voting that way, it will affect them when they go for -- when they're up for re-election. >> mr. heslin, thank you so much for joining us today. and we obviously convey our condolences and sympathies at your own loss. >> thank you. >> thank you, sir. next, congress tries to blame the president for flight delays. the white house says not so fast. stay with us. zap technology.

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if you're one of the thousands of people stuck at an airport right now, delayed by the sequester, which means that faa staff have had to be furloughed, then you may well be looking for someone to blame. and luckily enough, republicans are at the ready and know exactly who's responsible. >> as a result of the administration's poor planning, i would argue political motives, thousands of people were stuck on tarmacs over the last few days. the faa's mismanagement of this issue is a source of bipartisan frustration. our goal here shouldn't be to score political points on the backs of weary travelers. it should be to fix the problem. >> let's see. our goal here shouldn't to be to score political points. since when did mitch mcconnell outgrow his need to scoring political points? and isn't this what republicans have been doing for the last

five years? but today, this very broadcast, has become the victim of the ludicrous sequester. because we've been in discussions with representative january schakowsky of illinois, who this week is promoting a bill that would put 50,000 public servants, such as police officers and firefighters, back to work. it is the exact opposite of the sequester and seemed like a particularly good idea given the outpouring of appreciation following the work of our first responders in boston last week. so after discussions with my colleague, shana goldner, the good congresswoman agreed to fly from chicago to washington in time to appear at this very moment on this broadcast. but just an hour ago, one of her assistants called shana to say miss schakowsky was still stuck on the tarmac in chicago because in the words of the captain, the flight has been delayed by the sequester.

so while republicans seek to score political points, congresswoman schakowsky can't even get to washington in order to promote a bill that would seek to employ 50,000 more police and firefighters. given the state of affairs at chicago airport, we decided to postpone her appearance until friday in the hope that delays notwithstanding, she'll eventually make it to washington. next, the president plans a trip to texas to honor president bush. that should be interesting. stay with us. but first, amanda drury has the cnbc market wrap. good afternoon, amanda. >> good afternoon, martin. quite an interesting day for the markets. a bogus tweet sent from the associated press razzle stocks, sending the dow into a 145 point nose dive. hackers gained access and sent an erroneous tweet about the

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this evening the president dines with the women of the senate in a continuing effort to engage with all members of congress. joining us now is our woman of the moment, nbc's kristen welker. with so many different issues on hand, guns, immigration, budget, now terror, what is the president hoping to accomplish with this dinner this evening? >> reporter: well, martin, good afternoon to you. the man of the hour. the president, this is basically part of his charm offensive. what many people have dubbed his charm offensive. as you point out, that has

included the discussion of the budget. certainly immigration will be a large topic of conversation tonight, given the hearings on the hill this week. and, of course, there's been a lot of debate about where immigration should go in the wake of the boston bombings. so that will certainly be on the docket tonight, but i am told the president also wants to hear what these senators have to say. for example, senator gillibrand has taken on abuse in the military. also senator ayotte has called for more funding in syria and more intervention in syria. so those are some of the other topic that might get discussed. this is a part of dinner that already scheduled for these women. they decided to have it at the white house at the president's invitation. >> should be fascinating. kristen welker, as ever, thank you, kristen. with unitedhealthcare, i get information that matters... my individual health profile. not random statistics. they even reward me for addressing my health risks.

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missed the slow but certain unraveling of an approach to the economy championed by republicans. call it an obsession with the deficit or demand for austerity that's been coming from all quarters of the republican party since 2008. >> we can't continue to spend money we don't have. >> we can't just keep spending money we don't have. >> it's time to cut spending. >> unfortunately, the facts do not support their thesis. there is now a chorus of commentators, businessowners and corporate titans, who all accept that taking chunks out of an already melancholic economy will do nothing but sustain the misery. an individual who runs the world's largest bond fund said this in an interview. "the uk and almost all of europe have erred in terms of believing austerity, fiscal austerity in the short term is the way to produce real growth. it is not. you've got to spend money."

yet, despite this expert opinion, the republican party led by chairman reince priebus launched a twitter campaign yesterday attempting to blame the president for a policy that they, themselves, absolutely adore. it was pegged to the increasing impact of sequestration on domestic air travel. and produced the laughable claim that these individuals don't want the very cutbacks that they've been crying out for. so yesterday reince priebus began with this. "faa doesn't have to delay your flight, so why don't they and obama reprioritize?" #obamaflightdelays. then speaker boehner followed up with this. "faa has flexibility to cut costs without delaying air travelers. why won't president obama let them?" same hash tag. and bringing up the rear came house majority leader, eric cantor. "why is president obama unnecessarily delaying your flights?" same hash